WO2023002870A1 - 電子機器、電子機器の制御方法、及びプログラム - Google Patents
電子機器、電子機器の制御方法、及びプログラム Download PDFInfo
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- WO2023002870A1 WO2023002870A1 PCT/JP2022/027171 JP2022027171W WO2023002870A1 WO 2023002870 A1 WO2023002870 A1 WO 2023002870A1 JP 2022027171 W JP2022027171 W JP 2022027171W WO 2023002870 A1 WO2023002870 A1 WO 2023002870A1
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- 230000005540 biological transmission Effects 0.000 claims abstract description 167
- 238000012545 processing Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 123
- 238000001514 detection method Methods 0.000 claims description 32
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
- G01S13/00—Systems using the reflection or reradiation of radio waves, e.g. radar systems; Analogous systems using reflection or reradiation of waves whose nature or wavelength is irrelevant or unspecified
- G01S13/88—Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications
- G01S13/93—Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications for anti-collision purposes
- G01S13/931—Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications for anti-collision purposes of land vehicles
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
- G01S13/00—Systems using the reflection or reradiation of radio waves, e.g. radar systems; Analogous systems using reflection or reradiation of waves whose nature or wavelength is irrelevant or unspecified
- G01S13/02—Systems using reflection of radio waves, e.g. primary radar systems; Analogous systems
- G01S13/06—Systems determining position data of a target
- G01S13/08—Systems for measuring distance only
- G01S13/32—Systems for measuring distance only using transmission of continuous waves, whether amplitude-, frequency-, or phase-modulated, or unmodulated
- G01S13/34—Systems for measuring distance only using transmission of continuous waves, whether amplitude-, frequency-, or phase-modulated, or unmodulated using transmission of continuous, frequency-modulated waves while heterodyning the received signal, or a signal derived therefrom, with a locally-generated signal related to the contemporaneously transmitted signal
- G01S13/343—Systems for measuring distance only using transmission of continuous waves, whether amplitude-, frequency-, or phase-modulated, or unmodulated using transmission of continuous, frequency-modulated waves while heterodyning the received signal, or a signal derived therefrom, with a locally-generated signal related to the contemporaneously transmitted signal using sawtooth modulation
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
- G01S7/00—Details of systems according to groups G01S13/00, G01S15/00, G01S17/00
- G01S7/02—Details of systems according to groups G01S13/00, G01S15/00, G01S17/00 of systems according to group G01S13/00
- G01S7/40—Means for monitoring or calibrating
- G01S7/4004—Means for monitoring or calibrating of parts of a radar system
- G01S7/4008—Means for monitoring or calibrating of parts of a radar system of transmitters
- G01S7/4013—Means for monitoring or calibrating of parts of a radar system of transmitters involving adjustment of the transmitted power
Definitions
- the present disclosure relates to electronic devices, electronic device control methods, and programs.
- RADAR Radio Detecting and Ranging
- the importance of technology for measuring such distances is expected to increase in the future with the development of technology that assists the driver's driving and technology related to automated driving that automates part or all of driving. is expected.
- Patent Literature 1 proposes controlling a threshold for determining detection according to the intensity of a signal for detecting an object.
- An electronic device includes: a transmission antenna for transmitting transmission waves; a receiving antenna for receiving a reflected wave of the transmitted wave; a signal processing unit that calculates a distance between an object that reflects the transmission wave and the device itself based on a transmission signal that is transmitted as the transmission wave and a reception signal that is received as the reflected wave; a quality determination unit that determines the quality of the received signal; a control unit that controls to transmit the transmission wave in an operation mode corresponding to the distance between the object and the device, based on the quality of the received signal determined by the quality determination unit; Prepare.
- a control method for an electronic device includes: transmitting a transmission wave; a step of receiving a reflected wave obtained by reflecting the transmitted wave; calculating a distance between an object reflecting the transmission wave and the device itself based on the transmission signal transmitted as the transmission wave and the reception signal received as the reflected wave; determining the quality of the received signal; controlling to transmit the transmission wave in an operation mode corresponding to the distance between the object and the device, based on the quality of the received signal; including.
- a program comprises: electronic equipment, transmitting a transmission wave; a step of receiving a reflected wave obtained by reflecting the transmitted wave; calculating a distance between an object reflecting the transmission wave and the device itself based on the transmission signal transmitted as the transmission wave and the reception signal received as the reflected wave; determining the quality of the received signal; controlling to transmit the transmission wave in an operation mode corresponding to the distance between the object and the device, based on the quality of the received signal; to run.
- FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing functions of a control unit of an electronic device according to one embodiment;
- FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing functions of a signal processing unit of an electronic device according to one embodiment;
- FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the structure of a transmission signal according to one embodiment;
- FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of an electronic device according to one embodiment;
- 4A and 4B are schematic diagrams for explaining the operation of the electronic device according to the embodiment;
- An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic device, a control method for the electronic device, and a program that contribute to improving accuracy in detecting an object. According to one embodiment, it is possible to provide an electronic device, a control method for the electronic device, and a program that contribute to improving the accuracy of detecting an object.
- an "electronic device” may be, for example, a device driven by power supplied from a power system or a battery.
- “user” means a person who uses or can use an electronic device according to an embodiment (typically a human), and a person who uses a system including an electronic device according to an embodiment. Or it may be a person who can use it.
- An electronic device is mounted on a vehicle (moving body) such as an automobile, and can detect a predetermined object existing around the moving body as a target. For this reason, the electronic device according to one embodiment can transmit transmission waves around the mobile object from a transmission antenna installed on the mobile object. Also, the electronic device according to one embodiment can receive a reflected wave of a transmitted wave from a receiving antenna installed on a mobile object. At least one of the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna may be provided, for example, in a radar sensor or the like installed in a moving body.
- an electronic device according to one embodiment is mounted in an automobile such as a passenger car
- the electronic device according to one embodiment is not limited to automobiles.
- Electronic devices according to one embodiment include self-driving cars, buses, trucks, taxis, motorcycles, bicycles, ships, aircraft, helicopters, agricultural equipment such as tractors, snowplows, cleaning vehicles, police cars, ambulances, and drones. may be mounted on a mobile object.
- the electronic device according to one embodiment is not necessarily limited to a mobile body that moves by its own power.
- a mobile object on which an electronic device according to an embodiment is mounted may be a trailer portion towed by a tractor.
- An electronic device can measure the distance between a sensor and an object in a situation where at least one of the sensor and the predetermined object can move. Also, the electronic device according to one embodiment can measure the distance between the sensor and the object even if both the sensor and the object are stationary.
- automobiles included in the present disclosure are not limited by length, width, height, engine displacement, passenger capacity, payload, or the like.
- the automobiles of the present disclosure include automobiles with a displacement larger than 660 cc and automobiles with a displacement of 660 cc or less, so-called light automobiles.
- automobiles included in the present disclosure include automobiles that use electricity for part or all of the energy and that use motors.
- FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining how an electronic device according to one embodiment is used.
- FIG. 1 shows an example in which a sensor provided with a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna according to one embodiment is installed on a mobile object.
- a moving body 100 shown in FIG. 1 is equipped with a sensor 5 having a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna according to one embodiment. Further, it is assumed that the mobile object 100 shown in FIG. 1 has (for example, incorporates) the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment. A specific configuration of the electronic device 1 will be described later.
- the sensor 5 may, for example, comprise a transmitting antenna and/or a receiving antenna. Moreover, the sensor 5 may appropriately include at least one of other functional units such as at least part of the control unit 10 (see FIG. 2) included in the electronic device 1 .
- the vehicle 100 shown in FIG. 1 may be an automobile vehicle, such as a passenger car, but may be any type of vehicle. In FIG. 1, the moving body 100 may be moving (running or slowing down) in the positive Y-axis direction (advancing direction) shown in the drawing, may be moving in another direction, or may not be moving. You can stand still without moving.
- a moving object 100 is equipped with a sensor 5 having a transmitting antenna.
- only one sensor 5 having a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna is installed in front of the moving object 100.
- the position where the sensor 5 is installed on the moving body 100 is not limited to the position shown in FIG.
- the sensor 5 as shown in FIG. 1 may be installed on the left side, right side, and/or rear side of the moving body 100 .
- the number of such sensors 5 may be any number of one or more depending on various conditions (or requirements) such as the range and/or accuracy of measurement in the moving body 100 .
- the sensor 5 may be installed inside the moving body 100 .
- the inside of the moving body 100 may be, for example, the space inside the bumper, the space inside the body, the space inside the headlights, or the space in the driving space.
- the sensor 5 transmits electromagnetic waves as transmission waves from the transmission antenna. For example, when a predetermined object (for example, the object 200 shown in FIG. 1) exists around the moving body 100, at least part of the transmission wave transmitted from the sensor 5 is reflected by the object and becomes a reflected wave. By receiving such a reflected wave by, for example, the receiving antenna of the sensor 5, the electronic device 1 mounted on the moving object 100 can detect the object as a target.
- a predetermined object for example, the object 200 shown in FIG. 1
- the electronic device 1 mounted on the moving object 100 can detect the object as a target.
- a sensor 5 having a transmitting antenna may typically be a radar (RADAR (Radio Detecting and Ranging)) sensor that transmits and receives radio waves.
- sensor 5 is not limited to a radar sensor.
- the sensor 5 according to an embodiment may for example be a sensor based on the technique of LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging, Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) by means of light waves. Sensors such as these may comprise, for example, patch antennas. Since techniques such as RADAR and LIDAR are already known, detailed description may be simplified or omitted as appropriate.
- the electronic device 1 mounted on the moving body 100 shown in FIG. 1 receives the reflected wave of the transmission wave transmitted from the transmission antenna of the sensor 5 from the reception antenna. In this manner, the electronic device 1 can detect the predetermined object 200 existing within a predetermined distance from the moving object 100 as a target. For example, as shown in FIG. 1 , the electronic device 1 can measure (estimate) a distance A between a moving body 100 that is its own vehicle and a predetermined object 200 . In addition, the electronic device 1 can also measure (estimate) the relative speed between the mobile body 100 which is the own vehicle and the predetermined object 200 . Furthermore, the electronic device 1 can also measure (estimate) the direction (arrival angle ⁇ ) in which the reflected wave from the predetermined object 200 arrives at the moving object 100, which is the own vehicle.
- the object 200 is at least one of an oncoming vehicle running in a lane adjacent to the moving body 100, a vehicle running parallel to the moving body 100, and a vehicle running in the same lane as the moving body 100.
- Objects 200 include humans such as motorcycles, bicycles, strollers, and pedestrians, animals, insects, and other living organisms, guardrails, medians, road signs, sidewalk steps, walls, manholes, obstacles, and other moving objects. It may be any object that exists around the body 100 .
- object 200 may be moving or stationary.
- the object 200 may be an automobile parked or stopped around the moving object 100 .
- objects detected by the sensor 5 include inanimate objects as well as living organisms such as humans or animals.
- Objects detected by the sensor 5 of the present disclosure include targets including people, objects, animals, etc. that are detected by radar technology.
- the ratio between the size of the sensor 5 and the size of the moving body 100 does not necessarily indicate the actual ratio.
- the sensor 5 is shown installed outside the moving body 100 .
- sensors 5 may be placed at various locations on vehicle 100 .
- the sensor 5 may be installed inside the bumper of the vehicle 100 so that it does not appear on the exterior of the vehicle 100 .
- the transmitting antenna of the sensor 5 will be described as transmitting radio waves in a frequency band such as millimeter waves (30 GHz or higher) or quasi-millimeter waves (for example, around 20 GHz to 30 GHz).
- the transmitting antenna of sensor 5 may transmit radio waves having a frequency bandwidth of 4 GHz, such as 77 GHz to 81 GHz.
- FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram schematically showing a configuration example of the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment. An example of the configuration of the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment will be described below.
- FMCW radar frequency modulated continuous wave radar
- the FMCW radar sweeps the frequency of radio waves to be transmitted to generate a transmission signal. Therefore, in a millimeter-wave FMCW radar using radio waves of a frequency band of 79 GHz, for example, the frequencies of the radio waves used have a frequency bandwidth of 4 GHz, such as 77 GHz to 81 GHz.
- the 79 GHz frequency band radar is characterized by a wider usable frequency bandwidth than other millimeter/sub-millimeter wave radars, such as the 24 GHz, 60 GHz, and 76 GHz frequency bands. Such embodiments are described below by way of example.
- the electronic device 1 may be configured with a sensor 5 and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 50 .
- the ECU 50 controls various operations of the mobile body 100 .
- the ECU 50 may be composed of at least one or more ECUs.
- the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment may include a control section 10 .
- the electronic device 1 according to an embodiment may include other functional units such as the transmitter 20 and/or the receivers 30A to 30D as appropriate.
- the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment may include a signal processing section 40 .
- the electronic device 1 may include a plurality of receivers such as receivers 30A to 30D.
- the receiving section 30A, the receiving section 30B, the receiving section 30C, and the receiving section 30D are simply referred to as the "receiving section 30" when not distinguished from each other.
- FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing the functions of the control section 10 shown in FIG.
- the control section 10 may include a mode selection section 11 and a parameter setting section 12 . These functional units included in the control unit 10 will be further described later.
- FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically showing functions of the signal processing section 40 shown in FIG.
- the signal processing unit 40 includes a distance FFT processing unit 41, a velocity FFT processing unit 42, a threshold determination unit 43, an arrival angle estimation unit 44, an object detection unit 45, a quality determination unit 46, and an object tracking unit 47.
- a storage unit 48 may be included. These functional units included in the signal processing unit 40 will be further described later.
- the transmission section 20 may include a signal generation section 21, a synthesizer 22, phase control sections 23A and 23B, amplifiers 24A and 24B, and transmission antennas 25A and 25B.
- phase control section 23A and the phase control section 23B are not distinguished from each other, they are simply referred to as "phase control section 23".
- amplifier 24A and the amplifier 24B are not distinguished from each other, they are simply referred to as "amplifier 24".
- transmitting antenna 25A and the transmitting antenna 25B are not distinguished from each other, they are simply referred to as "transmitting antenna 25".
- the receiving unit 30 may include corresponding receiving antennas 31A to 31D, as shown in FIG.
- the receiving antenna 31A, the receiving antenna 31B, the receiving antenna 31C, and the receiving antenna 31D are simply referred to as "receiving antenna 31" when not distinguished from each other.
- each of the plurality of receiving units 30 may include an LNA 32, a mixer 33, an IF unit 34, and an AD conversion unit 35, as shown in FIG.
- the receiving units 30A to 30D may have the same configuration. In FIG. 2, as a typical example, the configuration of only the receiving section 30A is schematically shown.
- the sensor 5 described above may comprise a transmitting antenna 25 and a receiving antenna 31, for example. Moreover, the sensor 5 may include at least one of other functional units such as the control unit 10 and the signal processing unit 40 as appropriate.
- the control unit 10 included in the electronic device 1 can control the operation of the electronic device 1 as a whole, including the control of each functional unit that configures the electronic device 1 .
- the control unit 10 includes at least one processor, such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or DSP (Digital Signal Processor), to provide control and/or processing power for performing various functions. good.
- the control unit 10 may be implemented collectively by one processor, may be implemented by several processors, or may be implemented by individual processors.
- a processor may be implemented as a single integrated circuit. An integrated circuit is also called an IC (Integrated Circuit).
- a processor may be implemented as a plurality of communicatively coupled integrated and discrete circuits. Processors may be implemented based on various other known technologies.
- the control unit 10 may be configured as, for example, a CPU (hardware) and a program (software) executed by the CPU.
- the control unit 10 may include a memory necessary for the operation of the control unit 10 as appropriate.
- control section 10 may control at least one of the transmission section 20 and the reception section 30 .
- the control unit 10 may control at least one of the transmission unit 20 and the reception unit 30 based on various information stored in an arbitrary storage unit (memory). Further, in the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment, the control unit 10 may instruct the signal generation unit 21 to generate a signal, or may control the signal generation unit 21 to generate a signal.
- the mode selection unit 11 selects the operation mode of the electronic device 1 .
- the mode selector 11 may select the radar mode as the operating mode of the electronic device 1 .
- the radar mode selected by the mode selection unit 11 will be further described later.
- the operation mode of the electronic device 1 selected by the mode selection section 11 may be transmitted to the parameter setting section 12 and the signal processing section 40 .
- the parameter setting unit 12 sets various parameters corresponding to the operation mode of the electronic device 1 selected by the mode selection unit 11 .
- the parameter setting unit 12 may set various radar parameters corresponding to radar modes as parameters corresponding to the operation of the electronic device 1 .
- the parameters set by the parameter setting unit 12 may be stored in an arbitrary storage unit in advance, or may be obtained through communication, for example. Parameters set by the parameter setting unit 12 will be further described later. Parameters set by the parameter setting unit 12 may be transmitted to the transmission unit 20 . In one embodiment, the parameters set by the parameter setter 12 may be transmitted to the signal generator 21 (see FIG. 3) of the transmitter 20 .
- the signal generation section 21 of the transmission section 20 generates a transmission signal (transmission wave) to be transmitted from the electronic device 1 based on the parameters transmitted from the parameter setting section 12 .
- Various radar parameters corresponding to the radar mode include, for example, transmission start frequency, radio wave intensity, chirp slope (frequency change rate with respect to time), radio wave transmission period, scattering cross section of the target, radio wave transmission timing, frequency band, and analog At least one of the sampling rate of the digital converter and the like may be included.
- the signal generator 21 generates a signal (transmission signal) that is transmitted as a transmission wave T from the transmission antenna 25 under the control of the controller 10 .
- the signal generation section 21 may generate transmission signals based on various parameters transmitted from the parameter setting section 12 . Specifically, when generating a transmission signal, the signal generator 21 may allocate the frequency of the transmission signal based on the parameter set by the parameter setting unit 12, for example. Also, the signal generator 21 may allocate the frequency of the transmission signal according to the parameter set by the parameter setting unit 12, for example. For example, the signal generation unit 21 receives frequency information from the control unit 10 or an arbitrary storage unit (memory) to generate a signal of a predetermined frequency in a frequency band such as 77 to 81 GHz.
- the signal generation section 21 may be configured including a functional section such as a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO).
- VCO voltage controlled oscillator
- the signal generation unit 21 may be configured as hardware having the function, may be configured as a microcomputer, or may be configured as a processor such as a CPU and a program executed by the processor. good too.
- Each functional unit described below may be configured as hardware having the function, or if possible, may be configured by a microcomputer, etc., or may be executed by a processor such as a CPU and the processor. It may be configured as a program or the like to be executed.
- the signal generator 21 may generate a transmission signal (transmission chirp signal) such as a chirp signal.
- the signal generator 21 may generate a signal whose frequency linearly changes (linear chirp signal).
- the signal generator 21 may generate a chirp signal whose frequency linearly increases periodically from 77 GHz to 81 GHz over time.
- the signal generation unit 21 may generate a signal whose frequency periodically repeats a linear increase (up-chirp) and decrease (down-chirp) from 77 GHz to 81 GHz over time.
- the signal generated by the signal generating section 21 may be set in advance in the control section 10 (parameter setting section 12), for example.
- the signal generated by the signal generation unit 21 may be stored in advance in an arbitrary storage unit (memory), for example. Since chirp signals used in technical fields such as radar are well known, a more detailed description will be simplified or omitted as appropriate.
- a signal generated by the signal generator 21 is supplied to the synthesizer 22 .
- FIG. 5 is a diagram explaining an example of a chirp signal generated by the signal generator 21.
- FIG. 5 is a diagram explaining an example of a chirp signal generated by the signal generator 21.
- each chirp signal is indicated as c1, c2, . . . , c8. As shown in FIG. 5, each chirp signal has a linear increase in frequency over time.
- one subframe includes eight chirp signals such as c1, c2, . . . , c8. That is, subframe 1 and subframe 2 shown in FIG. 5 each include eight chirp signals c1, c2, . . . , c8. Also, in the example shown in FIG. 5, one frame includes 16 subframes such as subframe 1 to subframe 16 . That is, each of frames 1 and 2 shown in FIG. 5 includes 16 subframes. Also, as shown in FIG. 5, a frame interval of a predetermined length may be included between frames. One frame shown in FIG. 5 may be, for example, about 30 to 50 milliseconds long.
- frame 2 and subsequent frames may have the same configuration.
- frame 3 and subsequent frames may have the same configuration.
- the signal generator 21 may generate the transmission signal as any number of frames. Also, in FIG. 5, some chirp signals are omitted.
- the relationship between the time and frequency of the transmission signal generated by the signal generator 21 may be set by, for example, the parameter setting unit 12, or may be stored in an arbitrary storage unit (memory). .
- the electronic device 1 may transmit a transmission signal composed of subframes including a plurality of chirp signals. Further, the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment may transmit a transmission signal composed of a frame including a predetermined number of subframes.
- the electronic device 1 will be described below assuming that it transmits a transmission signal having a frame structure as shown in FIG.
- the frame structure as shown in FIG. 5 is an example, and the number of chirp signals included in one subframe is not limited to eight, for example.
- the signal generator 21 may generate subframes including any number (eg, any number) of chirp signals.
- the subframe structure as shown in FIG. 5 is also an example, and the number of subframes included in one frame is not limited to 16, for example.
- the signal generator 21 may generate a frame including any number of subframes (for example, any number of subframes).
- the signal generator 21 may generate signals of different frequencies.
- the signal generator 21 may generate a plurality of discrete signals with different bandwidths and different frequencies f.
- the synthesizer 22 increases the frequency of the signal generated by the signal generator 21 to a frequency in a predetermined frequency band.
- the synthesizer 22 may increase the frequency of the signal generated by the signal generator 21 up to the frequency selected as the frequency of the transmission wave T transmitted from the transmission antenna 25 .
- the frequency selected as the frequency of the transmission wave T transmitted from the transmission antenna 25 may be set by the control section 10 (parameter setting section 12), for example. Further, the frequency selected as the frequency of the transmission wave T transmitted from the transmission antenna 25 may be stored in any storage unit (memory), for example.
- a signal whose frequency has been raised by the synthesizer 22 is supplied to the phase control section 23 and the mixer 33 .
- the signal whose frequency has been raised by the synthesizer 22 may be supplied to each of the plurality of phase control sections 23 . Also, when there are a plurality of receivers 30 , the signal whose frequency has been raised by the synthesizer 22 may be supplied to each mixer 33 in the plurality of receivers 30 .
- the phase control section 23 controls the phase of the transmission signal supplied from the synthesizer 22 .
- the phase control unit 23 may adjust the phase of the transmission signal by appropriately advancing or delaying the phase of the signal supplied from the synthesizer 22 under the control of the control unit 10, for example.
- the phase controller 23 may adjust the phase of each transmission signal based on the path difference of each transmission wave T transmitted from the plurality of transmission antennas 25 .
- the transmission waves T transmitted from the plurality of transmission antennas 25 strengthen each other in a predetermined direction to form a beam (beamforming).
- the correlation between the direction of beamforming and the phase amounts to be controlled of the transmission signals respectively transmitted by the plurality of transmission antennas 25 may be stored in an arbitrary storage unit (memory), for example.
- the transmission signal phase-controlled by the phase controller 23 is supplied to the amplifier 24 .
- the amplifier 24 amplifies the power of the transmission signal supplied from the phase control section 23, for example, based on control by the control section 10.
- the plurality of amplifiers 24 adjust the power of the transmission signal supplied from each corresponding one of the plurality of phase control sections 23 to the control by the control section 10, for example.
- Each may be amplified based on Since the technique itself for amplifying the power of the transmission signal is already known, a more detailed explanation will be omitted.
- Amplifier 24 is connected to transmit antenna 25 .
- the transmission antenna 25 outputs (transmits) the transmission signal amplified by the amplifier 24 as a transmission wave T.
- the plurality of transmission antennas 25 may output (transmit) transmission signals amplified by corresponding ones of the plurality of amplifiers 24 as transmission waves T, respectively.
- the transmit antenna 25 can be configured similarly to transmit antennas used in known radar technology and will not be described in more detail.
- the electronic device 1 includes the transmission antenna 25 and can transmit a transmission signal (for example, a transmission chirp signal) as the transmission wave T from the transmission antenna 25 .
- a transmission signal for example, a transmission chirp signal
- at least one of the functional units that configure the electronic device 1 may be housed in one housing.
- the single housing may have a structure that cannot be easily opened.
- the transmitting antenna 25, the receiving antenna 31, and the amplifier 24 are housed in one housing, and that the housing cannot be easily opened.
- the transmission antenna 25 transmits the transmission wave T to the outside of the mobile body 100 via a cover member such as a radar cover.
- the radar cover may consist of a material that allows electromagnetic waves to pass through, such as synthetic resin or rubber.
- This radar cover may for example be the housing of the sensor 5 .
- a member such as a radar cover, it is possible to reduce the risk of the transmitting antenna 25 being damaged or malfunctioning due to contact with the outside.
- the radar cover and housing are also sometimes called radomes.
- the electronic device 1 shown in FIG. 2 shows an example in which two transmission antennas 25 are provided. However, in one embodiment, electronic device 1 may comprise any number of transmit antennas 25 . On the other hand, in one embodiment, the electronic device 1 may include a plurality of transmission antennas 25 when the transmission waves T transmitted from the transmission antennas 25 form beams in a predetermined direction. In one embodiment, electronic device 1 may comprise any number of transmit antennas 25 . In this case, the electronic device 1 may also include a plurality of phase control units 23 and a plurality of amplifiers 24 corresponding to a plurality of transmission antennas 25 . The plurality of phase controllers 23 may control the phases of the plurality of transmission waves supplied from the synthesizer 22 and transmitted from the plurality of transmission antennas 25, respectively.
- the plurality of amplifiers 24 may amplify the power of the plurality of transmission signals transmitted from the plurality of transmission antennas 25, respectively.
- the sensor 5 may be configured including a plurality of transmitting antennas. In this way, when the electronic device 1 shown in FIG. good.
- the receiving antenna 31 receives the reflected wave R.
- the reflected wave R may be the transmitted wave T reflected by the predetermined object 200 .
- the receiving antenna 31 may include a plurality of antennas, such as receiving antennas 31A to 31D.
- Receiving antenna 31 can be configured in the same manner as receiving antennas used in known radar technology and will not be described in more detail.
- Receiving antenna 31 is connected to LNA 32 .
- a received signal based on the reflected wave R received by the receiving antenna 31 is supplied to the LNA 32 .
- a transmission wave T transmitted as a transmission signal (transmission chirp signal) such as a chirp signal from a plurality of reception antennas 31 is reflected by a predetermined object 200 .
- a transmission chirp signal transmission chirp signal
- the reception signal based on the received reflected wave R is referred to as a reception chirp signal. That is, the electronic device 1 receives a reception signal (for example, a reception chirp signal) as a reflected wave R from the reception antenna 31 .
- the receiving antenna 31 may receive the reflected wave R from the outside of the moving object 100 via a cover member such as a radar cover.
- the radar cover may consist of a material that allows electromagnetic waves to pass through, such as synthetic resin or rubber.
- This radar cover may for example be the housing of the sensor 5 .
- one sensor 5 may include, for example, at least one transmit antenna 25 and at least one receive antenna 31 .
- one sensor 5 may include multiple transmit antennas 25 and multiple receive antennas 31 .
- one radar sensor may be covered with a cover member such as one radar cover.
- the LNA 32 amplifies the received signal based on the reflected wave R received by the receiving antenna 31 with low noise.
- the LNA 32 may be a Low Noise Amplifier and amplifies the received signal supplied from the receiving antenna 31 with low noise.
- the received signal amplified by LNA 32 is supplied to mixer 33 .
- the mixer 33 generates a beat signal by mixing (multiplying) the RF frequency reception signal supplied from the LNA 32 with the transmission signal supplied from the synthesizer 22 .
- a beat signal mixed by the mixer 33 is supplied to the IF section 34 .
- the IF unit 34 reduces the frequency of the beat signal to an intermediate frequency (IF) by performing frequency conversion on the beat signal supplied from the mixer 33 .
- IF intermediate frequency
- the beat signal whose frequency has been lowered by the IF section 34 is supplied to the AD conversion section 35 .
- the AD conversion section 35 digitizes the analog beat signal supplied from the IF section 34 .
- the AD converter 35 may be composed of any analog-to-digital converter (ADC).
- ADC analog-to-digital converter
- the beat signal digitized by the AD converter 35 may be supplied to the signal processor 40 . More specifically, the beat signal digitized by the AD converter 35 may be supplied to the distance FFT processor 41 (see FIG. 4) of the signal processor 40 .
- each beat signal digitized by the plurality of AD converters 35 may be supplied to the distance FFT processor 41 of the signal processor 40 .
- the signal processing section 40 included in the electronic device 1 may perform various signal processing on the signal (received signal) output from the receiving section 30 .
- Signal processing section 40 may include at least one processor, such as a CPU or DSP, to provide control and/or processing power to perform various functions, including signal processing.
- the signal processing units 40 may be collectively implemented by one processor, may be implemented by several processors, or may be implemented by individual processors.
- the signal processing unit 40 may be configured as, for example, a CPU (hardware) and a program (software) executed by the CPU.
- the signal processing unit 40 may include a memory necessary for the operation of the signal processing unit 40 as appropriate.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 calculates the distance between the moving body 100 on which the electronic device 1 is mounted and the object 200 based on the beat signal supplied from the AD conversion unit 35.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 may include, for example, a processing unit that performs fast Fourier transform.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 may be configured with an arbitrary circuit or chip that performs Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) processing.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 performs FFT processing on the beat signal digitized by the AD conversion unit 35 of the receiving unit 30 (hereinafter referred to as "distance FFT processing" as appropriate). Distance FFT processing is also referred to as 1D FFT processing.
- the distance FFT processor 41 may perform FFT processing on the complex signal supplied from the AD converter 35 .
- the beat signal digitized by the AD converter 35 can be expressed as a change in signal strength (power) over time.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 can express signal strength (power) corresponding to each frequency by performing FFT processing on such a beat signal.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 may determine that the predetermined object 200 is at the distance corresponding to the peak when the peak in the result obtained by the distance FFT processing is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. For example, when a peak value above a threshold value is detected from the average power or amplitude of the disturbance signal, as in detection processing based on a constant false alarm rate (CFAR), an object that reflects the transmitted wave (reflecting object ) is known to exist. Determination of whether or not an object exists based on such a threshold value may be performed, for example, by the threshold determination unit 43 described later.
- CFAR constant false alarm rate
- the electronic device 1 uses the object 200 that reflects the transmitted wave T as a target based on the transmitted signal that is transmitted as the transmitted wave T and the received signal that is received as the reflected wave R. can be detected.
- the distance FFT processing unit 41 can estimate the distance to a predetermined object based on one chirp signal (eg, c1 shown in FIG. 5). That is, the electronic device 1 can measure (estimate) the distance A shown in FIG. 1 by performing the distance FFT processing. Since the technique of measuring (estimating) the distance to a predetermined object by subjecting the beat signal to FFT processing is known per se, a more detailed description will be simplified or omitted as appropriate.
- a result of the distance FFT processing performed by the distance FFT processing unit 41 (for example, distance information) may be supplied to the velocity FFT processing unit 42 . Further, the result of the distance FFT processing performed by the distance FFT processing unit 41 may be supplied to other functional units such as the threshold determination unit 43, for example.
- the velocity FFT processing unit 42 estimates the relative velocity between the moving body 100 on which the electronic device 1 is mounted and the object 200 based on the beat signal subjected to the distance FFT processing by the distance FFT processing unit 41 .
- the velocity FFT processor 42 may include, for example, a processor that performs fast Fourier transform.
- the velocity FFT processing unit 42 may be composed of any circuit or chip that performs Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) processing.
- the velocity FFT processing unit 42 further performs FFT processing on the beat signal that has undergone the distance FFT processing by the distance FFT processing unit 41 (hereinafter referred to as "velocity FFT processing" as appropriate). Velocity FFT processing is also referred to as 2D FFT (Doppler FFT) processing.
- the velocity FFT processor 42 may perform FFT processing on the complex signal supplied from the distance FFT processor 41 .
- the velocity FFT processing unit 42 can estimate the relative velocity of a given object based on a subframe of the chirp signal (for example, subframe 1 shown in FIG. 5). When the beat signal is subjected to distance FFT processing as described above, a plurality of vectors can be generated.
- the electronic device 1 can measure (estimate) the relative velocity between the moving object 100 and the predetermined object 200 shown in FIG. 1 by performing velocity FFT processing. Since the technology itself for measuring (estimating) the relative velocity with respect to a predetermined object is known by performing velocity FFT processing on the result of distance FFT processing, more detailed description will be simplified or omitted as appropriate. do.
- a result of the speed FFT processing performed by the speed FFT processing unit 42 (for example, speed information) may be supplied to the threshold determination unit 43 .
- the result of the speed FFT processing performed by the speed FFT processing unit 42 may be supplied to the threshold determination unit 43, for example.
- the result of the velocity FFT processing performed by the velocity FFT processing unit 42 may be supplied to other functional units such as the arrival angle estimating unit 44, for example.
- the threshold determination unit 43 determines the distance and/or the relative speed. judgment processing is performed. In one embodiment, the threshold determination unit 43 may perform determination based on a predetermined threshold. For example, the threshold determination unit 43 determines whether the result of the distance FFT processing performed by the distance FFT processing unit 41 and/or the result of the speed FFT processing performed by the speed FFT processing unit 42 exceeds a predetermined threshold. You can judge whether The threshold determination unit 43 may determine that an object has been detected at a distance and/or relative speed exceeding a predetermined threshold.
- the threshold determination unit 43 selects only the results of the distance FFT processing performed by the distance FFT processing unit 41 and/or the results of the speed FFT processing performed by the speed FFT processing unit 42 that exceed a predetermined threshold. may be output.
- the operation performed by the threshold determination unit 43 may be similar to detection processing based on, for example, a constant false alarm rate (CFAR).
- the operation performed by the threshold determination unit 43 may be processing based on Order Statistic CFAR (OS-CFAR).
- OS-CFAR Order Statistic CFAR
- OS-CFER is a technique that sets a threshold based on ordered statistics and determines that a target is present if the threshold is exceeded.
- the result of the threshold value determination process performed by the threshold value determination unit 43 may be supplied to the arrival angle estimation unit 44 . Further, the result of the processing performed by the threshold determination unit 43 may be supplied to other functional units such as the object detection unit 45 and/or the quality determination unit 46, for example.
- the threshold determination unit 43 determines the presence or absence of an object based on the CFAR (for example, OS-CFER) threshold stored for each radar mode. you can go
- the arrival angle estimating unit 44 estimates the direction in which the reflected wave R arrives from the predetermined object 200 based on the result of the velocity FFT processing performed by the velocity FFT processing unit 42 and/or the output from the threshold value determining unit 43. presume.
- the arrival angle estimating unit 44 estimates the direction in which the reflected wave R arrives from the predetermined object 200 based on the result output from the threshold determining unit 43 among the results of the velocity FFT processing performed by the velocity FFT processing unit 42. can be estimated.
- the electronic device 1 can estimate the direction from which the reflected waves R arrive by receiving the reflected waves R from the plurality of receiving antennas 31 . For example, it is assumed that the plurality of receiving antennas 31 are arranged at predetermined intervals.
- the transmission wave T transmitted from the transmission antenna 25 is reflected by the predetermined object 200 to become the reflected wave R, and the plurality of reception antennas 31 arranged at predetermined intervals receive the reflected wave R respectively.
- the arrival angle estimator 44 estimates the direction in which the reflected wave R arrives at the receiving antenna 31 based on the phase of the reflected wave R received by each of the plurality of receiving antennas 31 and the path difference of each reflected wave R. can do. That is, the electronic device 1 can measure (estimate) the arrival angle ⁇ shown in FIG. 1 based on the result of the velocity FFT processing.
- the arrival angle estimator 44 estimates the arrival direction of the reflected wave based on the complex signals received by the plurality of receiving antennas 31 at the speed at which the object is determined to exist. good too.
- the electronic device 1 can estimate the angle of the direction in which the object exists.
- MUSIC MUltiple SIgnal Classification
- ESPRIT Estimat of Signal Parameters via Rotational Invariance Technique
- the object detection unit 45 detects an object based on information on the arrival direction (angle) of the reflected wave, information on the relative speed with respect to the target, and/or information on the distance to the target. is detected (for example, clustered) as a target.
- information on the arrival direction (angle) of the reflected wave may be acquired from the arrival angle estimator 44 .
- information on the relative speed and distance to the target may be obtained from the threshold determination unit 43 .
- the information on the relative velocity with respect to the target may be acquired from the velocity FFT processing section 42 .
- Information on the distance to the target may be obtained from the distance FFT processing section 41 .
- the object detection unit 45 may calculate the average power of points forming an object to be detected as a target.
- the object detection unit 45 determines the range in which the transmission wave T is transmitted.
- Detect objects in The object detection unit 45 may perform object detection by performing, for example, clustering processing based on the supplied distance information, speed information, and angle information.
- DBSCAN Density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise
- the average power of points forming the detected object may be calculated.
- At least one of distance information, speed information, angle information, and power information of the object detected by the object detection unit 45 may be supplied to the quality determination unit 46 .
- the output from the object detection unit 45 may be supplied to other functional units such as the ECU 50, for example. In this case, if the mobile object 100 is an automobile, communication may be performed using a communication interface such as CAN (Controller Area Network).
- CAN Controller Area Network
- the quality determination unit 46 determines whether the input received signal satisfies a predetermined quality. For example, the quality determination unit 46 may determine whether the angular variance of the point cloud associated with the detected object is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold. In one embodiment, the data associated between frames by the object tracker 47 may be used as the point cloud information associated with the detected object. Also, the quality determination unit 46 may determine, for example, whether or not the signal quality of the received signal is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold.
- the quality determination unit 46 determines whether the radar has a plurality of operation modes up to a distant object. may be notified to the control unit 10 so that a mode capable of detecting the distance of is set. In this way, the information notified from the quality determination unit 46 to the control unit 10 (for example, information indicating the operation mode of the radar to be set) may be stored in the storage unit 48 .
- the quality determination unit 46 may set a threshold value (CFAR threshold value) for detecting an object in an operation mode in which a distant object can be detected higher than before.
- threshold information set by the quality determination unit 46 (for example, information indicating the CFAR threshold) may also be stored in the storage unit 48 .
- the quality determination unit 46 may notify the control unit 10 so that the beam of the transmission wave is directed toward a distant object.
- the information notified from the quality determination unit 46 to the control unit 10 (for example, information indicating the direction of the beam to be directed) may be stored in the storage unit 48 . This allows the information indicating the direction of the beam to be directed to be used in the next frame (time).
- the control unit 10 may control, for example, the phase control unit 23 to perform beamforming based on the notified information indicating the direction of the beam.
- the object tracking unit 47 may perform, for example, a process of predicting the target position of the clustered object in the next frame.
- the object tracker 47 may predict the position of the clustered object in the next frame by using, for example, a Kalman filter.
- the object tracking unit 47 may store the predicted position of the object in the next frame, for example, in the storage unit 48 or the like.
- the object tracking unit 47 may store in the storage unit 48 or the like the operation mode in which the object was detected based on the point cloud associated with the detected object. For example, the object tracking unit 47 may store in the storage unit 48 or the like whether the detected object was detected in the first radar mode or in the second radar mode. In this case, the object tracking unit 47 may determine the order of priority between the first radar mode and the second radar mode depending on whether the relative velocity estimated in the previous frame is constant.
- the distance at which an object can be detected in the first radar mode may be greater (longer) than the distance at which an object can be detected in the second radar mode.
- this distance Rmax is divided into three, for example, a distance of 0 or more and less than Rmax/3 is a short distance, and a distance of Rmax/3 or more and less than 2Rmax/3 is a medium distance. , and 2Rmax/3 or more may be set as the long distance.
- the classification of detection distances by the radar of the present disclosure is not limited to such a case of three divisions.
- the classification of detection distances by the radar of the present disclosure may be divided into two, divided into four, divided into N (N>5), and the like.
- each division distance may be a different interval.
- a first radar mode may be applied at long or medium range and a second radar mode may be applied at short range. Also, the first radar mode may be applied at long range and the second radar mode may be applied at short or medium range.
- the maximum detection distance Rmax may be, for example, 300m, 200m, 100m, or 75m, but Rmax in the present disclosure is not limited to these numerical values. Rmax may be determined based on chirp slope, analog-to-digital converter sampling rate, target radar cross section, and/or antenna design.
- the object tracking unit 47 may use data in which frames are associated, for example, based on the principle of object tracking, as the point cloud related to the detected object.
- object tracking for example, information about an object predicted in the previous frame stored in the storage unit 48 (for example, distance, angle, speed, power, amount of dispersion of the point group, identification information, etc.) and observation in the current frame Frames may be associated based on correlation with the information of the objects captured.
- the object tracking unit 47 may predict the next frame using, for example, a Kalman filter from information on the object observed in the current frame associated as described above.
- the object tracking unit 47 may store information on the object obtained by prediction in the storage unit 48 or the like. Then, the object tracking unit 47 may output the information of the object predicted in the current frame calculated in the previous frame among the information stored in the memory.
- the storage unit 48 can store various types of information.
- the storage unit 48 can be configured by, for example, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like, but is not limited to these, and can be an arbitrary storage device. Further, for example, the storage unit 48 may be a storage medium such as a memory card inserted into the electronic device 1 according to this embodiment. Also, the storage unit 48 may be an internal memory such as a CPU used as the control unit 10 and/or the signal processing unit 40 .
- the storage unit 48 stores a received signal threshold (e.g., CFAR threshold) when detecting an object, a phase when directing a beam of a transmitted wave in a predetermined direction, an operation mode (radar mode) of the electronic device 1 ) may be stored.
- a received signal threshold e.g., CFAR threshold
- an operation mode radar mode
- the control unit 10 may control the operation mode of the electronic device 1 based on the operation mode information stored in the storage unit 48 . More specifically, the mode selection unit 11 of the control unit 10 may select the operation mode of the electronic device 1 based on the operation mode information stored in the storage unit 48 .
- the parameter setting unit 12 of the control unit 10 may set parameters based on various parameters stored in the storage unit 48 so that predetermined transmission waves are transmitted. Further, the parameter setting section 12 of the control section 10 may set various parameters necessary when the signal generating section 21 generates a transmission signal. Furthermore, the parameter setting unit 12 of the control unit 10 may set various parameters necessary for the phase control unit 23 to form a beam (beam forming) of the transmission wave in a predetermined direction.
- the threshold determination unit 43 may determine whether or not the received signal when detecting an object is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold based on threshold information (for example, CFAR threshold) stored in the storage unit 48 . Furthermore, the quality determination unit 46 may determine whether or not the received signal has a predetermined quality or higher based on the information on the signal quality stored in the storage unit 48 . Furthermore, the object tracking section 47 may track the detected object based on the information stored in the storage section 48 .
- threshold information for example, CFAR threshold
- the ECU 50 (see FIG. 2) included in the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment can control the operation of the mobile body 100 as a whole, including, for example, control of each functional unit that configures the mobile body 100 .
- the ECU 50 may include at least one processor, such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or DSP (Digital Signal Processor), to provide control and processing power for performing various functions.
- the ECU 50 may be implemented collectively by one processor, may be implemented by several processors, or may be implemented by individual processors.
- a processor may be implemented as a single integrated circuit. An integrated circuit is also called an IC (Integrated Circuit).
- a processor may be implemented as a plurality of communicatively coupled integrated and discrete circuits. Processors may be implemented based on various other known technologies.
- the ECU 50 may be configured as, for example, a CPU and a program executed by the CPU.
- the ECU 50 may include a memory necessary for the operation of the ECU 50 as appropriate.
- At least part of the function of the control unit 10 may be the function of the ECU 50 , or at least part of the function of the ECU 50 may be the function of the control unit 10 .
- the electronic device 1 shown in FIG. 2 includes two transmitting antennas 25 and four receiving antennas 31.
- the electronic device 1 may have any number of transmitting antennas 25 and any number of receiving antennas 31 .
- the electronic device 1 can be considered to have a virtual antenna array that is virtually composed of eight antennas. In this way, the electronic device 1 may receive the reflected waves R of the 16 subframes shown in FIG. 5 by using, for example, eight virtual antennas.
- the electronic device 1 transmits transmission waves from a transmission antenna, and receives reflected waves, which are transmission waves reflected by objects, from a reception antenna. Based on the transmitted signal and/or the received signal, the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment can detect an object that reflects the transmitted wave. The electronic device 1 according to one embodiment identifies whether the object thus detected is a predetermined target. The algorithm of processing by the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment will be further described below.
- the mode selection unit 11 of the control unit 10 selects the operation mode of the electronic device 1 by reading it from the storage unit 48, for example, and sets the selected operation mode to the parameter setting unit 12. and the signal processing unit 40.
- the parameter setting unit 12 sets parameters for the operation mode selected by the mode selection unit 11 and notifies the transmission unit 20 of the set parameters.
- the storage unit 48 may store a plurality of radar parameters.
- the control unit 10 can switch between a plurality of radar modes, for example, within one frame of the transmission wave by setting the radar parameters by the parameter setting unit 12 .
- the electronic device 1 can transmit transmission signals through the plurality of transmission antennas 25 and receive reception signals through the plurality of reception antennas 31 . Further, as described above, the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment can switch between a plurality of operation modes (radar modes) to transmit transmission waves. Furthermore, the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment can perform a plurality of beamformings in each of a plurality of radar modes.
- radar modes operation modes
- the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment can perform a plurality of beamformings in each of a plurality of radar modes.
- the electronic device 1 detects an object such as a vehicle approaching in the distance while performing the above operation.
- the far distance may be a position at a predetermined distance or more.
- far away may be any position that does not include the vicinity of the electronic device 1, such as a position at least about 50 m away.
- the electronic device 1 may select an operation mode corresponding to the detection of the distant object from among a plurality of operation modes (radar mode). Further, when detecting a distant object, the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment may perform beam forming so that the beam of the transmission wave is directed toward the detected object.
- a predetermined threshold value for example, the CFAR threshold value
- the predetermined value for increasing the predetermined threshold value may be, for example, a value adjusted so that a distant object can be detected satisfactorily.
- the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment can perform signal processing using signals with improved quality. Therefore, according to the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment, for example, the direction of arrival of an object can be accurately estimated.
- FIG. 6 is a flowchart explaining the operation of the signal processing section 40 of the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment.
- the operation shown in FIG. 6 may be repeated, for example, for each frame of the transmission wave. Also, the operation shown in FIG. 6 may be an operation performed by the signal processing unit 40 in the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment. Therefore, apart from the operation shown in FIG. 6, for example, the transmission unit 20 may transmit a transmission signal from the transmission antenna 25 and the reception unit 30 may perform an operation of receiving a reception signal from the reception antenna 31 .
- the velocity FFT processing unit 42 may perform velocity FFT processing on a plurality of received signals (step S11).
- the threshold determination unit 43 may determine whether or not the signal strength of the received signal subjected to velocity FFT processing is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold (step S12).
- the predetermined threshold may be a predetermined CFAR threshold.
- the arrival angle estimation unit 44 estimates the arrival direction of the detected object (step S13). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S12 that the signal intensity is not equal to or greater than the threshold, the signal processing section 40 may end the operation shown in FIG.
- the object detection unit 45 detects the object based on the processing results up to that point (step S14).
- the quality determination unit 46 determines whether the signal quality of the detected object satisfies a predetermined quality (step S15).
- step S15 when the signal quality of the object satisfies the predetermined quality in step S15 (YES), the quality determination unit 46 may end the operation shown in FIG. On the other hand, in step S15, when the signal quality of the object does not satisfy the predetermined quality (NO), the quality determination section 46 performs the operation of the next step S16.
- a predetermined quality for example, the angular variance value of the point group associated with the detected object is equal to or greater than a threshold, or the signal of the received signal Conditions such as the intensity being equal to or less than a threshold can be appropriately combined and set.
- step S16 the quality determination unit 46 stores in the storage unit 48 information for directing the beam of the transmission wave in at least one of the plurality of operation modes toward the detected object.
- the control unit 10 reads the necessary information from the storage unit 48 so that the beam of the transmission wave in at least one of the plurality of operation modes is directed toward the detected object. be able to.
- the control unit 10 performs control so that a plurality of operation modes are remote operation modes in the beam of the transmission wave. This point will be described with reference to FIG.
- FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically explaining the operation of the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment.
- control unit 10 first operates in an operation mode in which transmission signals such as chirp signals c1, c2, and c3 are transmitted from the transmission unit 20, as shown in FIG. 7(a).
- S1, S2, and S3 denote chirp slopes of chirp signals c1, c2, and c3, respectively.
- the chirp slope of each chirp signal satisfies S1>S2>S3.
- T1, T2, and T3 indicate the transmission periods of chirp signals c1, c2, and c3, respectively.
- the transmission period of each chirp signal is T1 ⁇ T2 ⁇ T3.
- Chirp signal c1 may correspond to near range
- chirp signal c2 may correspond to medium range
- chirp signal c3 may correspond to far range.
- step S15 shown in FIG. 6 if the signal quality of the object does not satisfy the predetermined quality (NO), the control unit 10 changes the operation mode of the chirp signal as shown in FIG. do.
- the change of the operation mode of the chirp signal may be performed in the same frame or subframe, or may be performed in the next frame or subframe. That is, in this case, the control unit 10 may set the chirp slope of the chirp signal c2 to S3 and use the chirp signal as the transmission wave in the long-distance operation mode.
- the electronic device 1 can transmit the transmission wave in the far-field mode, so that it is possible to perform appropriate object detection.
- the chirp signal shown in FIG. 7 is an example, and in one embodiment, chirp signals other than the signal shown in FIG. 7 may be used. In one embodiment, the maximum frequencies of different chirp signals may be different. Also, the types of chirp signals are not limited to only three types, and may be two types or four types or more.
- the control unit 10 changes the operation mode of transmission of any chirp signal to middle distance, etc.
- the operation mode may be set to a remote operation mode. Further, when proceeding to NO in S15 of FIG. 6, the control unit 10 sets N to be an integer of 2 or more, and sets M (M ⁇ N) chirp signals out of the N chirp signals being transmitted.
- the operation mode may be set to an operation mode farther than the operation mode that has been transmitted so far.
- the control unit 10 not only changes the value of the chirp slope S, but also appropriately combines various radar parameters corresponding to the radar mode to change the operation mode in S16.
- the various radar parameters corresponding to the radar mode may be the transmission start frequency, radio wave intensity, radio wave transmission period, scattering cross section of the object, radio wave transmission timing, frequency band, sampling rate of the analog-to-digital converter, and the like.
- the quality determination unit 46 may increase the threshold value (CFAR threshold value) for detecting an object by a predetermined value.
- the quality determination unit 46 may store in the storage unit 48 the threshold (CFAR threshold) increased by a predetermined value.
- the threshold determination unit 43 can perform determination using a threshold increased by a predetermined value by reading necessary information from the storage unit 48 .
- the change of the operating mode of the transmission wave and/or the change of the CFAR threshold, which are performed in S16, may be performed by the control unit 10, or may be performed by the control unit 10.
- the signal processing unit 40 calculates the distance between the object reflecting the transmitted wave and the electronic device 1 based on the transmitted signal transmitted as the transmitted wave and the received signal received as the reflected wave. Based on the quality of the received signal determined by the quality determination unit 46, the control unit 10 controls to transmit the transmission wave in an operation mode corresponding to the distance between the object and the electronic device 1.
- control unit 10 may perform beamforming of the transmission wave based on the quality of the received signal determined by the quality determination unit 46. For example, the control unit 10 may determine whether or not to beamform the transmission wave according to the quality of the received signal determined by the quality determination unit 46 .
- control unit 10 may perform control to operate in the first operation mode and the second operation mode in which transmission modes of transmission waves are different.
- the signal processing unit 40 may set the threshold for determining object detection in the second operation mode higher than the threshold for determining object detection in the first operation mode.
- the signal processing unit 40 may determine whether or not to preferentially detect the object based on the time it takes for the detected object to reach the electronic device 1 .
- the electronic device 1 when an object is detected far away from the electronic device 1, beams of transmission waves by a plurality of radars can be directed. Further, according to the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment, when an object is detected far from the electronic device 1, the CFAR threshold and/or the signal quality threshold are changed to be higher. Therefore, according to the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment, it is possible to improve the quality of the received signal when detecting an object. As a result, according to the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment, for example, it is possible to improve the accuracy of estimating the angle of arrival of a detected object.
- the threshold for determining detection In general radar technology, for example, it is conceivable to control the threshold for determining detection according to the strength of the signal that detects the object. However, in such control, when the signal strength is weak, the object can be easily detected by lowering the threshold. On the other hand, in such control, since the quality of the signal deteriorates, it is assumed that the accuracy in estimating the angle of arrival of the object, for example, deteriorates. According to the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment, it is possible to improve the quality of the received signal when detecting an object, and improve the accuracy of estimating the angle of arrival of the detected object.
- each functional unit, each means, each step, etc. are added to other embodiments so as not to be logically inconsistent, or each functional unit, each means, each step, etc. of other embodiments can be replaced with Also, in each embodiment, it is possible to combine a plurality of functional units, means, steps, etc. into one or divide them.
- the above-described embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to faithful implementation of the respective described embodiments, and may be implemented by combining features or omitting some of them as appropriate. can also
- multiple sensors 5 may perform object detection in the determined object detection range. Also, in one embodiment, multiple sensors 5 may beamform towards the determined object detection range.
- the above-described embodiment is not limited to implementation as the electronic device 1 only.
- the embodiments described above may be implemented as a control method for a device such as the electronic device 1 .
- the above-described embodiments may be implemented as a program executed by a device such as the electronic device 1 or a computer.
- the electronic device 1 may include at least part of only one of the sensor 5 and the control unit 10, for example.
- the electronic device 1 in addition to the control unit 10, at least one of a signal generation unit 21, a synthesizer 22, a phase control unit 23, an amplifier 24, and a transmission antenna 25 as shown in FIG. may be included as appropriate.
- the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment includes at least one of the receiving antenna 31, the LNA 32, the mixer 33, the IF unit 34, and the AD conversion unit 35 instead of or in addition to the above-described function units. It may be included as appropriate.
- the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment may be configured including an arbitrary storage unit (memory).
- the electronic device 1 can adopt various configuration modes. Moreover, when the electronic device 1 according to one embodiment is mounted on the mobile body 100 , at least one of the functional units described above may be installed at a suitable location such as inside the mobile body 100 . On the other hand, in one embodiment, for example, at least one of the transmitting antenna 25 and the receiving antenna 31 may be installed outside the mobile object 100 .
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Abstract
Description
送信波を送信する送信アンテナと、
前記送信波が反射された反射波を受信する受信アンテナと、
前記送信波として送信される送信信号及び前記反射波として受信される受信信号に基づいて、前記送信波を反射する物体と自機器との距離を算出する信号処理部と、
前記受信信号の品質を判定する品質判定部と、
前記品質判定部によって判定された前記受信信号の品質に基づいて、前記物体と自機器との距離に対応した動作モードによって前記送信波を送信するように制御する制御部と、
を備える。
送信波を送信するステップと、
前記送信波が反射された反射波を受信するステップと、
前記送信波として送信される送信信号及び前記反射波として受信される受信信号に基づいて、前記送信波を反射する物体と自機器との距離を算出するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質を判定するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質に基づいて、前記物体と自機器との距離に対応した動作モードによって前記送信波を送信するように制御するステップと、
を含む。
電子機器に、
送信波を送信するステップと、
前記送信波が反射された反射波を受信するステップと、
前記送信波として送信される送信信号及び前記反射波として受信される受信信号に基づいて、前記送信波を反射する物体と自機器との距離を算出するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質を判定するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質に基づいて、前記物体と自機器との距離に対応した動作モードによって前記送信波を送信するように制御するステップと、
を実行させる。
さらに、品質判定部46は、記憶部48に記憶された信号品質の情報に基づいて、受信信号が所定の品質以上になるか否かを判定してよい。さらに、物体追跡部47は、記憶部48に記憶された情報に基づいて、検出された物体の追跡を行ってよい。
5 センサ
10 制御部
11 モード選択部
12 パラメータ設定部
20 送信部
21 信号生成部
22 シンセサイザ
23 位相制御部
24 増幅器
25 送信アンテナ
30 受信部
31 受信アンテナ
32 LNA
33 ミキサ
34 IF部
35 AD変換部
40 信号処理部
41 距離FFT処理部
42 速度FFT処理部
43 閾値判定部
44 到来角推定部
45 物体検出部
46 品質判定部
47 物体追跡部
48 記憶部
50 ECU
100 移動体
200 物体
Claims (6)
- 送信波を送信する送信アンテナと、
前記送信波が反射された反射波を受信する受信アンテナと、
前記送信波として送信される送信信号及び前記反射波として受信される受信信号に基づいて、前記送信波を反射する物体と自機器との距離を算出する信号処理部と、
前記受信信号の品質を判定する品質判定部と、
前記品質判定部によって判定された前記受信信号の品質に基づいて、前記物体と自機器との距離に対応した動作モードによって前記送信波を送信するように制御する制御部と、
を備える、電子機器。 - 前記制御部は、前記品質判定部によって判定された品質に基づいて、前記送信波のビームフォーミングを行う、請求項1に記載の電子機器。
- 前記制御部は、前記送信波の送信態様が異なる第1動作モード及び第2動作モードで動作するように制御し、
前記信号処理部は、前記第2動作モードにおいて前記物体の検出を判定する閾値を、前記第1動作モードにおいて前記物体の検出を判定する閾値よりも高くする、請求項1又は2に記載の電子機器。 - 前記信号処理部は、前記物体が自機器に到達するまでの時間に基づいて、当該物体を優先的に検出する対象とするか否かを決定する、請求項1から3のいずれかに記載の電子機器。
- 送信波を送信するステップと、
前記送信波が反射された反射波を受信するステップと、
前記送信波として送信される送信信号及び前記反射波として受信される受信信号に基づいて、前記送信波を反射する物体と自機器との距離を算出するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質を判定するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質に基づいて、前記物体と自機器との距離に対応した動作モードによって前記送信波を送信するように制御するステップと、
を含む、電子機器の制御方法。 - 電子機器に、
送信波を送信するステップと、
前記送信波が反射された反射波を受信するステップと、
前記送信波として送信される送信信号及び前記反射波として受信される受信信号に基づいて、前記送信波を反射する物体と自機器との距離を算出するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質を判定するステップと、
前記受信信号の品質に基づいて、前記物体と自機器との距離に対応した動作モードによって前記送信波を送信するように制御するステップと、
を実行させる、プログラム。
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JP2020106432A (ja) * | 2018-12-27 | 2020-07-09 | Jrcモビリティ株式会社 | 距離測定装置 |
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- 2022-07-08 EP EP22845804.8A patent/EP4375704A1/en active Pending
- 2022-07-08 WO PCT/JP2022/027171 patent/WO2023002870A1/ja active Application Filing
- 2022-07-08 CN CN202280048680.7A patent/CN117616306A/zh active Pending
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JPH04278487A (ja) * | 1991-03-06 | 1992-10-05 | Toyota Motor Corp | 車両用レーダ装置 |
JPH08334557A (ja) * | 1995-06-09 | 1996-12-17 | Honda Motor Co Ltd | 車載用レーダ装置 |
JPH116872A (ja) * | 1997-06-18 | 1999-01-12 | Honda Motor Co Ltd | Fm−cwレーダ装置 |
JP2003185741A (ja) | 2001-12-20 | 2003-07-03 | Mitsubishi Electric Corp | レーダ信号処理装置 |
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